Churches affected by charismaticism or Pentecostalism can run along traditional lines. But, they can also deviate badly. One deviation is the way they resort to occult practices. Before Pentecostalism began formally at Azusa Street, it was brewing up an unholy mix in the 1800s, with many occultisms. Today, the same mix is found amongst modern churches, and it is just as unholy.

I will begin with part of an email sent to me by a concerned Christian:

“… it is called Light and Life… The main principle is that people with the Holy (?) Spirit go into psychic fairs and give spiritual readings, healing (i.e. inner healing) plus dream interpretations and prophetic art (where the artist paints a picture of how God sees a person, showing great love), etc. (Many Christians use this service, too). It is (done) supposedly to give these psychic searchers what they are looking for, and to turn them to Jesus. Usually, the ‘spiritual readings’ tell the person who is seeking in the occult, how much God loves them and has a plan for their lives.

I met a minister whom I know and he was telling me that some of his congregation were very worried about him introducing this thing into his church, and asked me what I knew about it. I told him the ‘healing links’ came from ‘healing rooms’, and dream interpretations came from ‘Streams’ by John Paul Jackson.

I said to him that the Holy Spirit would convict these people of sin and until they repented they were enemies of God. He was not very pleased, and though it might have sounded unloving I felt it was true.”

Firstly, the lady who sent me the email was not ‘unloving’ – she was telling the truth. God is far tougher on sinners than we ever are! People who practice the occult ARE enemies of God, and unless they repent, they will enter hell. And if a minister leads his church into this error, he is guilty before God and will be judged, possibly on this earth. If a man who calls himself ‘pastor’ cannot discern what is Satanic, he is not a true pastor called by God!

Secondly, I came across a similar ‘experiment’ in evangelising several decades ago, and wrote a rebuttal as a warning, published in a local newspaper. Then, as now, the idea was led by ‘charismatics’. Now, many charismatics and some Pentecostalists are revamping their Satanic and occult roots. We cannot dismiss the fact that Pentecostalism is rooted in the psychic happenings at Azusa Street, but it is their evil spawn – charismaticism – that is now leading the way, corrupting many with lies and deception. Of course, behind them is Satan, the true enemy of our souls.

No genuine Christian will be asked by God to enter the lion’s den of occultism on the off-chance that they can ‘convert’ occultists. God calls occultists out of their environment and He does not rely on ‘off-chance’! He elects people, convicts them of sin, and demands their repentance. Few will be called – their choice of Satan is an evidence. Until they repent they are doing the will of their father, the devil, and we must never enter their place of practice.

To enter a psychic fair and tell psychics (occultists/witches) that God loves them is a gross deception by Christians. God has an agape love – which merely means regard – for all His creatures, but He does not have saving love for anyone who is not elect! He does not send Christians into a satanic event ‘just in case’ some might listen. Rather, He has already elected who will be saved – and most who enter occultism are not elect… which is why they slide into Satanic practices. To tell every occultist that God loves them is very wrong and unbiblical. And the fact of demonic activity cannot be forgotten: when the Toronto Blessing ravaged the churches, demons were transferred mainly by touch, but also by simply being in the same room as ‘Blessing’ activities. The reason this happens is that demons (rightly) assume that if people willingly enter a satanic stronghold, they are easy (and often willing) targets. Christians who do so are not just foolish – they are sinful.

Art prophecy is just a nonsense invented by charismatics. The infamous Elijah List is currently offering ‘classes’ in such ‘prophecy’. Inner healing is another deception – see my article on the topic. Dream interpretations are taken from secular psychology and are just subjective guesses. So-called ‘spiritual readings’ are fraudulent… those who give them prepare ‘readings’ that will fit all sizes, and just keep repeating them. The fact that these readings tell occultists that God loves them, proves they are not holy utterances: God says that witches (occultists) must be put to death!

As for occultists ‘searching’… they only search for satanic power and activities. They are not searching for God! No man searches for God, because their spirits are dead. Man can only respond when the Holy Spirit regenerates his soul. He never searches for God: see Romans 8:7!

‘Streams’ ministries attempts to satisfy people’s longings. This is opposite to the way God operates. He tells us we are sinners and demands our obedience and repentance. I have read some of this ministries ‘holy’ interpretations of dreams… they are nothing but psychology dressed in Bible. For example, talking about a car dream, the ‘interpreter’ says a flat tyre indicates the dreamer needs to be ‘refilled with the Spirit’. What nonsense! We cannot get a ‘refill’ of the Holy Spirit. We are filled at salvation. Full stop. And so psychological guesswork masquerades as ‘interpretation’. John Paul Jackson is a charismatic who thinks he can bring out gifts in people. In his ‘beliefs’ (some of which are sound) he says that the Holy Spirit “regenerates those who repent”. This is error, for a man whose spirit is dead cannot repent! The idea is Arminian is concept. He also believes that the Holy Spirit is imparted as a second blessing. There are other errors.